Book of the Day #1

Just as what you consume physically can effect the quality of experience you have in the world so too can the visual and audible content you choose to take in.

With this in mind I will be sharing books which have shaped/are shaping the ideas and thoughts I am having, and ones especially which I feel have contributed to helping me overcome challenges I have faced, with the hope that they may be of similar benefit to you.

Do share with me your own favourites too as I am always open to being stretched and challenged in new ways and directions.

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BOOK OF THE DAY 1:

Abraham H. Maslow was one of the foremost spokespersons of humanistic psychology. In The Farthest Reaches of Human Nature, an extension of his classic Toward a Psychology of Being, Maslow explores the complexities of human nature by using both the empirical methods of science and the aesthetics of philosophical inquiry. With essays on biology, synergy, creativity, cognition, self-actualization, and the hierarchy of needs, this posthumous work is a wide-ranging synthesis of Maslow's inspiring and influential ideas.

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"It is certainly possible for most of us to be greater than we are in actuality. We all have unused potentialities or not fully developed ones. It is certainly true that many of us evade our constitutionally suggested vocations (call, destiny, task in life, mission). So often we run away from the responsibilities dictated (or rather suggested) by nature, by fate, even sometimes by accident. We fear our highest possibilities. We are generally afraid to become that which we can glimpse in our most perfect moments, under conditions of great courage. We enjoy and even thrill to godlike possibilities we see in ourselves in such peak moments. And yet we simultaneously shiver with weakness, awe, and fear before these very same possibilities."

- Excerpt from 'The Farthest Reaches of Human Nature' pg 34

Skin Rejuvenation The Easy Way With Clay

Looking at my face now you would be hard pushed to tell that I once suffered from a debilitating chronic acne condition. Thankfully at the time I chose to sidestep the more conventional route of prescription medication to explore alternative avenues. The rest as they say is history with my skin now looking flawless, day in day out, as long as I stick to what I know and have learned over the years in regard to skin health and lifestyle. I am currently putting together a free ebook on this topic as it is something very close to my heart, and one that pains me very much when I see people needlessly suffering, and failing, with what is currently vogue and on offer as a solution at the moment. In the meantime though check out my website for some tips and suggestions, which while not directly advertised as for the skin will have a profound effect on it (alongside many other things) if practiced on a consistent basis over the long term.

Enjoy the recipe below too, one of my weekly skin protocols, which will provide instant and noticeable effects to the health of your skin.


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As far back as the Egyptians clay has been recorded as a useful beautifying and detoxifying tool. Through its rich mineral content and absorption and adsorption properties it is able to deep clean pores, exfoliate dead cells, while simultaneously feeding skin cells. Give this recipe a go at least once a week, preferably after the sauna and/or steam room, and notice some immediate improvements in the look and tone of your skin.

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Green Clay ACV Face Mask

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•1TSP Organic French green clay

•1TSP raw organic apple cider vinegar

•Enough extra water to make a thick paste

Add ACV and clay to a bowl and begin to mix until clay absorbs all the liquid. Next add enough water to the mixture until you have a paste which can be spread. Cover face and neck and leave on until completely dry (around twenty minutes) and then wash off.

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"Clay possesses unsatisfied ionic bonds around the edges of its mineral particles. It naturally seeks to satisfy those bonds. For this to happen, it must meet with a substance carrying an opposite electrical charge. The particles of clay are said to carry a negative electrical charge, where's impurities, or toxins, carry a positive electrical charge. Positively charged toxins are attracted by the negatively charged edges of the clay mineral. An exchange reaction occurs whereby the clay swaps its ions for those of the other substance. Now, electrically satisfied, it holds the toxin in suspension for both to be eliminated."

Ran Knishinsky - The Clay Cure

How to introduce more green foods into your meals the fun, tasty, and easy way

While we intuitively know green foods to have benefit to our health the challenge for many people comes in finding these foods appealing enough, taste wise, to eat on a consistent basis. One route around this can be through a fun and tasty dressings. Give this recipe a try if you are one of these people who desires to eat more greens, yet finds it hard to convince your taste buds otherwise.

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Steamed Autumnal Greens

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•1 Bunch local seasonal greens (Purple sprouting broccoli was used for the image above)

•1TB Raw Apple Cider Vinegar (or fresh Lemon juice)

•1 clove chopped/crushed garlic

•1TB Hemp oil (or other cold pressed oil of choice)

•1TB unpasteurised miso (or 1/2 tsp sun dried sea salt)

•1TB Sesame tahini ( or nut/seed butter of choice)

•1/2-1 small chopped fresh hot chili.

Steam greens. Blend/mix all other ingredients, minus the chili, and pour over the cooked greens. Garnish with chili and enjoy.

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"Fall is the season of harvest, a time to pull inward and gather together on all levels, a time to store up fuel, food, and warm clothing, a time to study and plan for the approaching stillness of winter. To prepare food which reflects the qualities of autumn, we must be aware of its abundant yet contracting nature. This awareness can be heightened by choices for more astringent as well as heartier flavours and foods. The fall is is the time to organise the open and perhaps scattered patterns of the previous warmer seasons. To stimulate this activity in the body, to focus mentally, and to begin the process of contraction, add more sour flavoured foods. Likewise, the bitter and salty flavours move energy strongly inward and downward; ideally they are gradually introduced as the fall progresses into winter."

- Paul Pitchford, 'Healing With Wholefoods'

Quote of The Day

Revisiting a classic within humanistic psychology and one of my all time personal favourites, "Motivation and Personality" by Abraham Maslow.

Tip of the Day 2

Agriculture's arrival some 10000+ years ago brought many benefits to the diets of humans, most notably the ready and constant supply of calorie dense foods. With this macronutrient (fats, proteins, carbohydrates) increase though has come some micronutrient (vitamins, minerals) loss, with plants loosing interesting and important flavour and nutrition compounds through the gradual process of domestication. Fortunately though many wild/semi wild foods are still available, either to be bought, or harvested, if you have the time or the inclination.

Some common and readily available choices for rounding out and boosting micronutrient levels in your diet are : brazil nuts, dandelion, rocket, amaranth, asparagus, quinoa, wild rice, kale, seaweed, herbs and berries. No need to go off the deep end and live in the wild eating only rabbit poo like Ray Mears, a few simple tweaks to what you are already doing can make all the difference.

Have fun and experiment.

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"Virtually all Brazil nut production comes from wild forest trees and wild-harvesting. The trees grow very slowly, taking as long as 10 to 30 years before producing nuts, and they require a specific species of bee to pollinate the flowers. Both of these factors make the trees unsuitable and unprofitable for plantation cultivation.

The Brazil nut tree is a good example of the intricate ecosystem of the Amazon, where plants and animals are inexplicably intertwined. Not only is the pollination of this tree so specialized, requiring one particular insect species to produce the fruit, but only one species of animal is capable of chewing through the extremely tough fruit pod to disburse the seeds for new tree growth. The agouti, a rather large rat (up to 10 pounds!) with extremely sharp front teeth, is solely responsible for reseeding the forest with Brazil nuts and ensuring the next generation of trees. In the Amazon rainforest, the tree, bee, and agouti are all dependent on one another for survival."

- Lesley Taylor, The Healing Power Of Rainforest Herbs

Tip of the Day 1

As winter moves in and temperatures drop some people may experience challenges in maintaining warmth and heat in their extremities. In some cases this can be simply down to poor blood flow and circulation. A simple and easy remedy to correct this is to add more warming, circulatory boosting spices and herbs to your diet. Ginger, fresh and dried, is King is this regard. Try 1 tsp of dried ginger in your morning smoothie or add a big chunk of fresh ginger to your daily vegetable juice.

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"Ginger is foremost a circulatory herb with pronounced effects on the heart and blood. Japanese researchers have found that ginger causes the heart to beet more strongly and slowly and that blood pressure lowers 10-15 points after ginger is ingested. The blood vessels relax and expand, lowering blood pressure and allowing the heart to beat more slowly to pump the blood throughout the body. This combined with a more stronger beat of the heart, means that blood is pumped more efficiently throughout the body"

-Stephen Harrod Buhner